Nonstop flight route between Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States and Velikiye Luki, Pskov Oblast, Russia:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Biggs Army Airfield (BIF), Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, United States and Velikiye Luki Airport (VLU), Velikiye Luki, Pskov Oblast, Russia would travel a Great Circle distance of 5,840 miles (or 9,398 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Biggs Army Airfield and Velikiye Luki Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Biggs Army Airfield and Velikiye Luki Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Biggs Army Airfield (BIF):

• In 1920 Camp Owen Bierne opened on the site of the current airbase as a base for airship operations but the units were soon disbanded.
• The furthest airport from Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) is Sir Gaëtan Duval Airport (RRG), which is located 11,387 miles (18,325 kilometers) away in Rodrigues Island, Mauritius.
• The 97th Air Refueling Squadron, activated in March 1949, saw its manning increase as it received its first KB-29P in January 1950.
• Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) currently has only 1 runway.
• With the arrival of the 95th Bomb Wing in June 1952, the host unit at Biggs was changed to the SAC 810th Air Division, which operationally controlled both the 97th and 95th Bombardment Wings.
• Between the two World Wars, Biggs served as a refueling stop for transient aircraft.
• While in Alaska, the 97th Bombardment Wing had been activated under the Hobson Plan, and the 97th Bomb Group became a subordinate organization under the wing.
• Prior to the takeover of Biggs by SAC in October 1948, it had previously moved the B-29 Superfortress-equipped 97th Bombardment Group to the base in May.
• In addition to being known as "Biggs Army Airfield", another name for BIF is "Biggs Air Force BaseBiggs Field".
• The closest airport to Biggs Army Airfield (BIF) is El Paso International Airport (ELP), which is located only 3 miles (5 kilometers) S of BIF.
• With the activation of TAC, the new command assigned Headquarters, Ninth Air Force to Biggs on 28 March upon its return from Germany.

Facts about Velikiye Luki Airport (VLU):

• The closest airport to Velikiye Luki Airport (VLU) is Smolensk South Airport (LNX), which is located 127 miles (204 kilometers) SSE of VLU.
• Because of Velikiye Luki Airport's relatively low elevation of 328 feet, planes can take off or land at Velikiye Luki Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• Velikiye Luki Airport (VLU) currently has only 1 runway.
• In addition to being known as "Velikiye Luki Airport", another name for VLU is "Аэропорт Великие Луки".
• The furthest airport from Velikiye Luki Airport (VLU) is Chatham Islands (CHT), which is located 10,971 miles (17,657 kilometers) away in Waitangi, Chatham Islands, New Zealand.